Consultant presents findings on parks and recreation Master Plan

Facility needs one area of focus

At a presentation on the Parks and Recreation Master Plan findings, the consulting team presented a "visioning map" that would trails and bike routes of different kinds around and throughout the city. (Sara Waite / Sterling Journal-Advocate)

STERLING — — The consultants working with the city of Sterling Parks, Library and Recreation Department on a new Parks and Recreation Master Plan presented their findings Monday to what Senior Project Consultant John Barnholt of GreenPlay LLC called a "small but enthusiastic" crowd.

The presentation, Barnholt said, was the "check-in point" of the master planning process. The planning team has already held focus group meetings and conducted a survey of residents to get public feedback on what the community's recreational needs are. They have also completed an inventory of the facilities and services that are available in the community, through the city or other providers.

Barnholt said that what they have found so far can be broken into several reoccuring themes. The first is that the city has a high level of service, with plenty of parks and green space as well as programming. One of the key messages they heard from the public is that they need to sustain and maintain what is already in place. However, Barnholt said they also identified a need for improved trail systems, improved hours of operation (specifically at the outdoor pool) and affordable programs. He said they also found capacity constraints due to lack of facilities and staffing limitations.

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He reviewed some key demographics: population trends and projections for the city, median income and median age. Sterling's population — 14,777 in 2010 — is expected to remain fairly constant over the next few years. The median age of residents, 36.5, is not much different as the state average of 36.2. However, the median annual income for local residents of $34,871 is about $20,000 less than the state level of $54,424 — thus the need to ensure that services are affordable, Barnholt said.

This slide from the presentation shows the level of service weighted by population density to find areas where walkable recreational opportunities are below the threshold or non-existant. (Courtesy photo)

The feedback from the public indicated a majority are satisfied with the parks and recreation opportunities in the city, and believe they are important. Some key issues that came up as reasons households do not use facilities and programs include a lack of awareness about the services, hours of operation, safety concerns and cost.

Responses indicate that residents generally think the city's spending on parks and recreation is "about right." Overall, respondents weren't in favor of raising sales or property taxes or developing a special taxing district to increase spending, but of the three ideas, sales tax was most popular.

Carter Marshall, landscape designer/planner with Design Concepts, spoke about how the team analyzed the level of service areas within the city receive as far as recreational opportunities. They assign scores to each park or facility and components within those sites based on whether they meet or exceed expectations or fall short. They map those cumulative scores with pre-determined "buffer zones" to show what the level of service is in a given area. Marshall explained that they look at two kinds of buffers — one that shows a driveable distance of 1 mile, and the other "walkability" map representing a 10-minute walk, or about a third of a mile, to recreational opportunities. The walkable buffer is also affected by pedestrian barriers such as major roads or railroads.

The general access map, which includes both drivable and walkable buffer zones, shows all of Sterling is well served. The areas with best access to recreation are concentrated in the city center and near Pioneer Park.

But when looking at walkable access, there are some areas that fall below a predetermined threshold for levels of service, and some areas that are not served at all. The threshold, Marshall explained, is a minimum standard equivalent to a park with open turf, a playground and picnic shelter. Sterling's Propst Park serves as a park that meets that standard.

When population density is factored in, about 42 percent of the city offers adequate walkable access to recreation; 31 percent falls below the threshold and 27 percent has no service. They found three areas where the level of service is poor or non-existent, and offered some suggestions for unique approaches to each area. They recommended turning an abandoned railroad right of way along Cheyenne Boulevard into a park with a trail system, and building a stronger partnership with the school system to develop recreational opportunities at Campbell and Ayres elementaries, which would address the needs on the west end of Sterling where walkable services are low.

They also presented an analysis on the city's trails and bicycle paths, and presented a "visioning map" that suggests connecting and extending those routes with bike lanes and detached sidewalks, urban trails and multi-use trails.

Dave Peterson, landscape architect for Design Concepts, said one of the keys is to get the information and ideas from the master planning process out to the community and key stakeholders to get them excited about it.

He also recommended looking at how recreation fits in with the city's overall master plan, such as whether park spaces are included in areas of future development.

The consulting team is slated to return to Sterling in February with their final recommendations. They noted that there are some issues that the city should address that don't lend themselves to maps, which will be discussed in further detail at that presentation.

They will present a plan that will have some specifics, but also be open and flexible, and will present options with a range of costs, Barnholt said.

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